Michael and I first met when we were 8 years old. I was the only foreigner at Chalfont C of E Junior School so I guess you’d guess that I got a lot of stick. I certainly did. But Mick befriended me and always looked after me. We were in the same class and then ended up at Dr Challoners together. He was very witty and I continually laughed at his antics to the point that someone on the school bus said: “ Do you pay him to laugh. ” No need; he had me in stitches. This could only happen to Mick: We were running cross country together, as usual Mick was leading the pack, and then a fox ran out of a hollowed out tree trunk and tripped Mick over. Seems like yesterday that I doubled up in laughter as he sprawled on the floor wondering what had hit him. Yet that was over 50 years ago. I remember us being together in the old van dumped into a bomb hole in the woods off Layters Green Lane while the other kids threw massive rocks at it to see who could bravely last the longest inside. Mick, your bravery was never in doubt. Mick was a very talented young man and could have been successful at anything that he put his mind to, whether in sports or business. Though he went through a skinhead stage at school, he soon reverted to the gentle and kind soul that he naturally was. I remember when he started courting Patsy and telling me how much he loved her. They seemed destined to be together. Though starting a family at a very young age, he lived up to his obligations and always provided well. He absolutely adored his girls and told me all about them. He wrote a very long and thoughtful card about my mother when I lost her in 2018. Typically thoughtful of him though we had gone on different life paths in adulthood. It was nice to know he cared even after the long passage of years. How heavy the world seems now that we have also lost him too. Though I personally believe that he has a future back here on Earth ( Job14:14,15 John 5:28,29 John 11:25 ) his loss is still hard to bear. Mick, thank you for being my friend when I needed a friend the most and not going with the crowd that kept taunting me. Thank you for all the dignity that you have shown throughout your life. You walked upright and looked everyman in the eye. Thank you for being a good family man and showing others how it is done while making a success of whatever you touched despite your humble beginnings. You have left a great legacy and your family must really love you for all of your ways. Goodbye my friend Paul Pixley